obama's senior advisor david pluf offerd this assessment on nbc's meet the press. >> challengers tend to benefit from debates. we've expected all along that governor romney will have a good night. he's prepared more than any candidate in history. he's showing himself to be a very, very good debater through the years. we understand that this is an important moment. >> woodruff: and more important moments are to come. the second presidential debate will be a town hall format at hofstra in hempstead, new york, on october 16. that's to be followed by a foreign policy debate at lynn university in boca raton, florida, on october 22. the vice president shall debate will be held october 11 at center college in danville, kentucky. heading into the series, the latest polls show that nationally the obama-romney race is still close. but the president is moving ahead in most of the battle ground states. to get a sense of where the race stands, and what each campaign believes the candidates must do in those debates, we're joined by our regular duo, stuart rothenberg of the "rothenberg political rep